Toe-weight



(No Model.)

G. D. WILLIAMS.

TOE WEIGHT.

Attorney ANDREW BYGRAHAM. PMTHI'LTTNO.WASNINGTUNv D C UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GRIFFITH D. W'ILLIAMS, OF PEOKVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

TOE-WEIG HT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 560,117, dated May 12, 1896. Application filed November 30, 1895. Serial No. 570,620. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GRIFFITH D. WILLIAMS, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Peckville, in the county of Lackawanna and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in ToelVeights; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of referonce marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Figure l of the drawings is a side view of a horses hoof, showing the invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a side view of a hoof, showing clip applied thereto with weight removed. Fig. 3 is a front view of same with the weight shown in dotted lines. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the weight.

The object of this invention is to provide an improved toe-weight for trotting-horses which will not fall off, and which is held in place without the use of set-screws, threads, or other auxiliary fastening devices; and the invention consists in the novel construction and combination of parts, all as hereinafter described, and pointed out in the appended claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the letter A indicates a portion of a horses hoof to which I have shown my improved weight applied.

13 designates the inverted -T shaped clip which is screwed or otherwise firmly secured to the front portion of its hoof, the screws being seated in perforations in the head portion of the clip. Said head portion is reinforced on its inner face by an extra thickness Z) of metal, which is formed integral with the clip or is welded thereto, its purpose being to bring the vertical arm or spur of the clip a short distance away from the surface of the hoof with which it is substantially parallel. The upper end of said arm or spur is usually formed with a downward and inward bevel, as indicated at c, in order to facilitate its entrance into the loop of the toe-weight proper, now to be described. Said weight (indicated by the letter O) has upon its rear face an elongated vertical loop D of the proper size to fit over the spurof the clip in a neat man ner, both the loop and spur being preferably somewhat tapering-that is to say, of gradually-increasing width from top to bottom.

\Vhen the weight is of lead and the loop of iron or other hard metal, as is usually the case, said loop may be secured to the weight by melting the lead around the inward flanges d of the loop to form solid abutments cl. In this case, when the weight is applied to the clip, the lower ends of these abutments form shoulders which rest upon the upper edges of the horizontal arms of the clip.

While the weight is held in place in part by the friction of the loop on the spur of the clip and between said spur and the hoof, it is also greatly assisted in its retention by its own gravity and the backward inclination of the spur.

Having thus described my inventionpvhat I claim as new, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is-

The herein-described toe-weight, consisting of an inverted-T-shaped clip adapted to be secured to the hoof, and having a vertical tapered arm or spur parallel with the surface of the hoof and offset therefrom a short distance, and the weight proper having upon its rear face an elongated inwardly-oifset loop designed to slidingly engage the said spur in a neat manner, said weight having at the lower end of said loop and upon each side thereof a solid transverse shoulder or abutment designed to seat against the upper edges of horizontal arms of the said clip, said weight being retained in place solely by friction, its own gravity, and the rearward inclination of the said arm or spur, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GRIFFITH D. WILLIAMS.

IVitnesses:

HANNAH OoATEs, SARAH COATES. 

